01.03.09
Parade of Shadows – Gloria Whelan
by Gloria Whelan
Summary: It’s 1907, and sixteen-year-old Julia Hamilton is excited when she learns of her father going to the middle east. As she has lived her entire life in England, she wishes for adventure and convinces her father to take her with him, although he is reluctant at first.
Julia expects adventure. She gets much, much more. She meets Edith, a woman who frequently travels in these parts and collects plants; Grahm Geddes, an English student, passionately (and dangerously) mixed in politics; and Paul Louvois, a French antiques collector who might be smuggling valubles out of the country. Julia must decide who she will trust and what she is willing to do.
I think: I liked this book very much. The writing was detailed but easy to follow, and the plot was intriguing. I had some suspicious about the result by the middle of the book, which turned out to be correct, but that didn’t really ruin the book.
I do love Historical Fiction. I find textbook history tiresome at times (who can stand all those confusing scenes of war?) but historical fiction can bring me into the story. So I was a little disappointed when there was no “Author’s note” explaining the history or similar thing at the end of the story. That was probably one of my only complaints about the book.
The other ones contain spoilers, so I won’t mention them, except to say that the so-called villain was probably one of my favorite characters of the book (and I didn’t think that person was that bad). Although that is normal, because I seem to have a liking for villains.
12.12.08
Recent Reads – December 2008
I’ve been reading a lot lately, and I just hate it when I read too much and cannot post on them. Therefore, today I shall post my recent reads with little reviews next to them.
by Jeanne Birdsall
A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy
I loved reading this book. It was so fun! It’s one of those old-fashioned, squeaky clean books full of humor and adventure (and trouble!)
by Robin McKinley
She’s just a beekeeper with a woodright; she shouldn’t be Chalice, second in command. But she is, and she has to deal.
It’s been so long since I read a Robin McKinley book for the first time – and it’s so nice. Her writing is so detailed and enjoyable. It could have been a short story, but it was written into a novel and it’s probably better that way.
by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer
Josie has celebral palsy, which makes her different from everyone else. But she wants to just forget her difference and live.
This book was written in verse. I’ve wanted to read this for so long, and I’m delighted that I finally have. The verses were compelling, and sweet, just like Josie herself.
by Irene Hunt
Julie’s mother has died, so she, with her brother Chris, leaves her father to live with her stern, spinster aunt. She cannot at all imagine what will happen to her.
This is a very old book (I think it was published sometime when my parents were born) but it was so good I decided to include it anyway. The book was detailed, the characters very lovable, and the story charming.
11.24.08
The Smile – Donna Jo Napoli
by Donna Jo Napoli
Who was the woman in Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous portrait, Mona Lisa? In Napoli’s story, it’s a girl named Elisabetta. One day, she will marry a noble in Florence. With her father’s friend, Leonardo Da Vinci’s help, she meets Giuliano de’ Medici. But troubled times are approaching Florence, and a woman’s choices are limited…
This novel was sweet and emphatic. The time in the novel was slightly confusing, but it matched the chaotic time in history. Elisabetta was such a sweet narrator – it wasn’t hard to eventually invision her to be the model of the most famous picture in the world
11.17.08
The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen – Syrie James
by Syrie James
Something that is often mentioned when people bring up the famous author of Pride and Prejudice (among others) is that Jane Austen, a writer of romance, died a spinster. All her books ended with a wedding (at least one wedding) but she herself never married.
Many people have imagined what might have happened if Jane Austen had had a romance, one that she kept secret for certain reasons.
What if someone found a sealed up chest in Jane Austen’s former house – and it was revealed to be full of Austen’s own experiences – and one of them told of a romance of her own?
The novel takes place while Jane is revising Sense and Sensibility. I really liked reading how her “real-life experiences” let themselves out in S&S. And because Austen is so famous a writer about courtships, I think people (in general, woman) would love to hear that she had her own romance.
I personally loved reading all Jane Austen’s books (yes, sadly I’ve already read all of them, so I can never read one of them anew again), and I found this view into her personal life was very fun. The language was good, in a way that echoed Austen’s, and Syrie James somehow managed to blend a bittersweet romance to perfectly correspond with other events that occurred in her life at that time. It was fantastic.
10.20.08
The Crimson Thread-Suzanne Weyn
by Suzanne Weyn
Bridget is heading the America, the land of opportunity, with her fathers, brothers, and little sister. Her father eventually finds a job as a coachman for the wealthy J.P. Wellington. And with him, Bridget gets a job as a seamstress-but with an American name. Her name is Bertie now.
Then her father then boasts that she can “spin straw into gold”, and Bertie doesn’t know what to do. But then, amazingly, assisted with a mysterious friend by the name Ray Stalls, she is actually able to transform the blue material into stunning gowns made to look as if they are spun with gold. The only problem is, Bertie doesn’t know how to repay Ray, because the one thing he asks for she is unable to give him.
This was a wonderfully imagined book that actually followed the original fairy-tale pretty well. My only problems was that Ray Stalls’s feelings seemed a little unrealistic, and the first and last chapter seemed a little irrelevant, unimportant. But other than that, this was a sweet, romantic story.
I’ve always been interested in sewing and spinning and things like that, and I loved the way the dresses and designs were such a big part of the novel. (And I admit I love the color.) The Crimson Thread is a wonderfully quick read, and Bertie is a nice, realistic girl who I really enjoyed spending my time with.
07.19.08
Favorite Books
It occured to me that I was publishing book reviews— but I hadn’t mentioned any of my favorites! So because I really haven’t read any books I feel like reviewing lately (I like to keep my reviewing positive), I decided to do that today. They’re not all in order, but I’ve done my best to sort them out.
by Shannon Hale
Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee is the Crown Princess of Kildenree. As the first born, she is meant to rule after her mother and father die… or at least she thought so.
But things change.
Her brother becomes the heir to the throne. Unbeknownest to Ani’s father, Ani’s mother betrothed her to the prince of Bayern, a neighboring country. Ani is only told after her father dies. So shortly after her sixteenth birthday, Ani sets out to meet the man she is to marry, armed with only a few guards, her lady-in-waiting, and her ability to speak with birds and her horse, Falada.
I really love this book. It is just my favorite book, period. No questions asked.
Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins. I didn’t like this book the first time I read it, but the second time I really, really liked it. I think it was a little mature for me, the first time.
Just Listen by Sarah Dessen. I think it’s my favorite of all her books. At least, it’s my favorite out of the ones I’ve read.
by Jacqueline Woodson
It’s January 1971, and Frannie is living with her parents and deaf older brother, Sean. They live on the other side of the highway, the ‘black’ side. So when a white boy suddenly appeared in Frannie’s classroom, and her classmates take to calling him ‘Jesus boy’, she’s surprised. And when Samantha, her best friend, takes to believing Jesus boy is the real Jesus, come back, Frannie decides to investigate.
I really like this book. Told in Frannie’s light, easy narrative, it’s sweet and light and funny. Yet beneath it there’s a more serious matter. Maybe I like it because the religious issues in the book kind of match what I agree with. I picked it up because it won Newbery Honor, and I didn’t expect to like it very much. Turns out, I did. And a lot, too.
The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson. Actually, I’m not sure if this is really an absolute favorite. But then, even if it isn’t, it should be on your to read list if you haven’t read it already. This book is lovely.
Jane Austen’s books. I have a feeling that my favorite JA book at this particular moment is Sense and Sensibility, but I also love the rest. I am very good at flipflopping between them, because they are all. so. good.
by Juliet Marillier
Jena lives with her four sisters close to the Transylvania woods, a place of mystery and magic. The five of them find a portal that allow them to go to a dancing glen in the forest on every full moon, where they dance the night away with strang, magical creatures.
But Jena’s cousin, Costi, was drowned in the forest, in a pond. And now his brother, Cezar, wants to revenge him, by cutting down the forest… and killing Jena’s secret friends. To make matters worse, Jena is sure her older sister, Tati, is falling in love with a Night Person, which is forbidden. Can Jena figure out what to do and who to trust, before it’s too late?
Personally, I found this book fantastic. I liked it immediately. I don’t know about you, but books usually have to dwell on me for a while before I like them. Almost all of my favorite books have endured times of indifference from me. Plus, the cover is lovely.
On Pointe by Lorie Ann Grover. This isn’t the best book that I’ve read that’s written in verse, yet it’s my favorite that’s been written in verse. It just rings true.
Strays Like Us by Richard Peck. To be honest, it’s been a long time since I read this book, and I don’t think I’d like it as much as I did before. Still, I can’t help but remember this book.
So this is about all I’ll post for now.
Verity
07.09.08
Uprising
by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Here is the blurb that’s on the back of the cover:
New York City, 1910.
Bella, newly arrived from Italy and desperate to send money home to her family, is one of the hundreds of workers at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory who endure grueling conditions and brutal labor for meager wages.
Yetta, a Russian immigrant who also works at the Triangle factory, is an outspoken advocate for labor rights who becomes one of the leaders of the strike.
Jane, a society girl unhappy with the stifling limits of her existence, also gets involved in their cause.
As the strike drags on, the lives of the three girls become intertwined. All of them are in the factory one fateful day in March when a spark ignites some cloth. The resulting fire became one of the worst workplace disasters ever.
I really liked this book. It is a book about friendship and rights, about life and death. It’s serious and honest and bittersweet. It’s not completely realistic, and there were some places where I sat back and thought, Yeah, sure. (Sarcastically).
Because they didn’t seem correct. They just really didn’t. And yet… I really liked this book. In spite of the things I hardly believed and couldn’t believe and just didn’t believe, I still enjoyed this book. I think it’s not so much about the writing but more about the content. I found this book confusing, as if the time and stuff were unstable, but I liked it all the same. I don’t think I like it because of the literature (although the writing was okay) or the plot, but rather what was inside, about how everyone matters, no matter how little they do.
And it was a little scary. All those girls… not even twenty, not even old enough to go to college. I think Yetta was only sixteen. It impressed me how its ending was a little like, ‘Things happen, but life goes on. You can’t relive the past; you learn how to live with it and be grateful for whatever happens.’ I really felt like that as I was reading it, and yet it really wasn’t over condescending or corny or clichéd.
I enjoyed this book. I really did. It’s not on my favorites list, but it’s definitely on the memorable list.
